Puerto Galera

PUERTO GALERA

Just a few hours’ travel time from Manila, this gorgeous collection of bays and islands is one of the country’s top dive destinations. Puerto Galera is Spanish for ‘port of the galleons’. Its deep natural harbour, sheltered on all sides, was a favoured anchorage well before the Spanish arrived in 1572, and today it remains a favoured anchorage for long-term yachties and short-term vacationers.

Puerto Galera (‘PG’, or ‘Puerto’) typically refers to the town of Puerto Galera and the resort areas surrounding it – namely Sabang, 5km to the east, and White Beach, 7km to the west. Each has its own distinct character, spanning the range from sleaze to sophistication; you’d be well advised to choose carefully.

Read More

Mt. Guiting-Guiting

MT. GUITING-GUITING

Mt. Guiting-Guiting rise 2,075 meters above sea level in the middle of Sibuyan Island. Wild and unexplored, it is a challenging mountain for seasoned climbers. Before hiking, hiring experienced guides is a must. Wild ferns, orchids, and bonsai dot the rocky trails. The entire island and neighboring Romblon and Marinduque can be seen at the summit of the mountain.

Romblon's highest peak. It is an attraction to mountaineers and is the province's major source of timber and metallic products. It is also abundant with wildlife, plant species, and waterfalls.

At 6,750 above sea level, Mt. Guiting Guiting is not nearly one of the tallest peaks in the country and yet it is one of the most sought after mountains in the record of Philippine Mountaineering. Dubbed by some local and international natural scientists as the “Galapagos of Asia,” Mt. Guiting Guiting boasts of its thick and old growth vegetation and forests. Sure enough, the mountain doesn’t have the freezing temperatures in Pulag or the height of Apo and yet it has caught the attention and gained the respect of mountaineers.

Mt. Guiting Guiting is notable for its rocky ridges -- three of the few are the “Knife Ridge,” “Kiss the Wall,” and the “Peak of Deception.” The rocky ridges are all steep and jagged and definitely sharp. You should be very careful on where to step and where to hold on the rocks.

Located in one of the three major islands of Romblon province, Sibuyan Island, Mt. Guiting Guiting is considered as one of the most difficult and challenging mountains in the country. Only mountaineers with enough stamina are advised to try the challenge that Mt. Guiting Guiting holds.

Read More

EL NIDO

EL NIDO

The so-called El Nido-Taytay Managed Resource Protected Area is the largest marine sanctuary in the entire Philippines.[22] The Protected Area status accords the areas of El Nido and portions of its neighboring town of Taytay[18] a place among the eight priority sites[11][23] in the country in need of conservation. The Protected Area covers a total of 903.21 square kilometers, of which 40% are terrestrial and 60% marine.

The provincial government has mobilized its citizenry to actively participate in various environmental conservation and protection programs, such as the "Bantay Gubat" for forest protection, and the "Bantay Dagat" for the marine life preservation.[20] Patrolling within the Protected Area especially in the marine zones is regularly conducted with the help of the World Wildlife Fund - Philippines that allocates funds to support the said activity. Other logistic support is by the concerned municipal governments. The Palawan Council for Sustainable Management (PCSD) provides legal assistance during the litigation of cases filed by the Protected Area Office (PAO).

As a protected area, the Philippine government needs approximately US$ 180,000 annually to protect and manage its natural resources.Tourists are encouraged to pay US$ 0.50 per day as conservation fee for the duration of their visit at the Municipal Tourism Office or the Office of the Protected Area Management Board (PAMB), which are housed in the Municipal Building in Calle Real.[25] This was embodied in the PAMB Resolution No. 08 series 2000 from the National Integrated Protected Area Program (NIPAP) of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Read More

Puerto Princesa Underground River

PUERTO PRINCESA UNDERGROUND RIVER

The Puerto Princesa Subterranean National Park, where the Underground River is found, has been a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1999. It has also been chosen as one of the modern Seven Wonders of the World.

This park features a spectacular limestone karst landscape with an underground river. One of the river's distinguishing features is that it emerges directly into the sea, and its lower portion is subject to tidal influences. The area also represents a significant habitat for biodiversity conservation. The site contains a full 'mountain-to-sea' ecosystem and has some of the most important forests in Asia.

Each group is assigned a boatman with paddle boat equipped with a search light. The boatman gives a running commentary while viewing the formations inside the pitch-dark recesses. A most impressive area inside would be the 'cathedral', towering some 800 meters in height.

This is the main reason why I went to Puerto Princesa. Not only is it one of the 7 new wonders of nature, but imagine being able to see formations that took millions of years! Pretty humbling and awesome in my opinion. Yes, travel time and waiting time is a bit long (1.5-2hrs by van to Sabang port, wait in the port to ride on your assigned boat, arrive at the island and wait for your turn to ride the paddle boat) that will take you to the underground river) but it's all worth it! Plus you'll have a nice view in the island and the possibility to see wild monkeys run around (or steal some food from other tourists) and see large monitor lizards walk by. 

The boatmen who will be your guide during the actual underground river tour are funny and very entertaining. They will point out different stalactites and stalagmites which looks like something else. Beauty and imagination combined! 

Word of caution, it may smell a little different inside because if the thousands of small bats but for me, it was part of the attraction.

Read More

Battle of Pulang Lupa Marker

BATTLE OF PULANG LUPA MARKER 

Battle of Pulang Lupa Marker was built in memory of the Marinduque revolutionary forces who fought the Americans, a marker stands at the site of the bloodiest battle ever fought in the island, and was the first known major battle won by the Filipinos over the Americans.

 “The marker stands at the site of the famous battle won by the Marinduquenos over the well-armed American forces on Sept. 13, 1900. The Americans led by Capt. Deverieux Shields surrendered to the Marinduque Revolutionary Forces led by Col. Maximo Abad. They were held captive for a month and were released on October 14, 1900 upon orders from the Revolutionary Government in Cavite.” – says the Battle of Pulang Lupa Historical Park Signage in Poctoy, Torrijos, Marinduque, courtesy of the Department of Tourism, LGU Torrijos and Philippine Tourism Authority.

This battle has been commemorated from the early 60s when September 13 was first declared as ”Marinduque Day” under the administration of Pres. Diosdado Macapagal, then by President Ferdinand E. Marcos who issued a proclamation referring to it also as “Marinduque Day”. It was only during the term of President Corazon C. Aquino when a law was passed (RA 6702) in 1988 declaring September 13 of every year as “Battle of Pulang Lupa Day”.

Read More

Polillo Coral Reef

POLILLO CORAL REEF

Located just before the entrance to the cave of Polillo town, the coral reef has a length of about five kilometers and a width of about two kilometers. It is also a good spot for snorkeling and diving. Some parts are so shallow that any type of ship and banca will have to make a detour to avoid the reef area. Some parts have so-called walls which are more than a hundred feet deep.

Polillo’s coral reefs are characterized by fringing reefs around the islands with underwater coral islands just below the surface in many places. During low tide, the extensive reef flats become exposed.

The coral reefs drop down to about fourteen meters in most places, after which it changes into a sandy bottom with coral patches.

Many of the species found are adapted to murky waters such as Soapfish (Diplorion bifasciatum) and Sand Bass (Psammoperca waigiensis).

Read More

Angono Petroglyphs

ANGONO PETROLGLYPHS

The Angono Petroglyphs Site Museum is situated at the municipality of Binangonan, province of Rizal, three and a half kilometers southeast of the town of Angono. It was discovered in 1965 by National Artist, Carlos “Botong” Francisco during a field trip with a troop of boy scouts. He reported to the National Museum the existence of a cave with drawings of a primitive quality.

In October 1965, a National Museum interdisciplinary research team headed by archaeologist Alfredo Evangelista recovered four stone tools from the site. Subsequent excavations in the cave and its vicinities also yielded fragments of earthenware, obsidian flakes and shells. Jesus Peralta, an anthropologist and former Assistant Director of the National Museum, brought the Angono Petroglyphs to the public’s attention through his research. To heighten consciousness on the cultural value of the site, the National Museum in 1998, established a museum showcasing the cultural and artistic heritage of the province of Rizal. 

On a small rock wall a short drive from Metro Manila, enigmatic carvings that are believed to date back 5,000 years are in danger of disappearing before their mysteries can be solved.

The 127 engravings of people, animals and geometric shapes are the Philippines' oldest known artworks, but encroaching urbanization, vandals and the ravages of nature are growing threats.

"Eventually they will disappear... preservation is out of the question," veteran anthropologist Jesus Peralta, who did an extensive and widely respected study of the carvings in the 1970s, told AFP.

The artworks have been declared a national treasure, regarded as the best proof that relatively sophisticated societies existed in the Philippines in the Stone Age.

"They show that in ancient times, the Philippines did have a complex culture. It's a recording of our ancestors," said Leo Batoon, a senior researcher of the National Museum.

Museum scientists believe the carvings date back to 3000 BC, based on carving tools and pottery shards discovered at the site, indicating they originated before the use of metal tools.

This makes them far older than the country's second oldest known artworks, a series of geometric shapes in the mountainous northern Philippines that are believed to date to 1500 BC, according to Batoon.

Read More